Domestic Violence

18092009

Every time you think your outrage-o-meter can’t go any higher, something else crops up. Today we have a classic, as reported by the SEIU blog (source: SEIU). If you think that health insurance companies just use pre-existing conditions crap to discriminate against cancer patients, don’t worry. They also use pre-existing conditions to discriminate against victims of domestic violence! (source: Huffington Post) In eight states and DC, being a victim of domestic violence is considered a pre-existing condition. That’s right: in eight states, if your spouse beats you, the insurance companies are allowed to join in! For the record, the eight states are Idaho, Mississippi, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, and Wyoming. And those sound to me like the states where domestic violence is pretty prevalent. Hey, I’ve seen the show “Cops.” God forbid that a prior victim of domestic violence really does fall down the stairs. The insurance companies would be saying she was beaten up so that they wouldn’t have to cover her injuries. In fact, if you have a history of being a victim of domestic violence, it would be almost impossible to get treated for any injury. That also means it’s not just poor people who have trouble getting health insurance—it’s also women like Rihanna. According to the health insurance industry, Chris Brown is a pre-existing condition.

On a positive note, the Commerce Department reported today that retail sales in August were up 2.7 percent over July (source: The NY Times). That means people are shopping again… and they aren’t buying the Republicans’ claims that the stimulus program isn’t working. Sales at car dealerships rose 11.9 percent, mostly due to the “cash for clunkers” program. Meanwhile, sales at clothing stores rose 2.4 percent. Maybe we need a “cash for outfits you can’t wear anymore” program. The government could give us a rebate for turning in clothing that’s now too tight (or just plain tacky) and let us use the money to buy something nice for the fall. Plus, if we had nicer, better fitting clothes we’d go out more… and increase sales at movies, bars, and restaurants. OK, maybe it’s not much of an idea, but it’s an idea. And that’s more than Republicans have come up with on the economy or healthcare recently.

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6 responses

Former president of a Seattle insurance company once told me that the inside joke/secret handshake of the industry was:
“How do you spell insurance? F-*-C-K-T-H-E-M-A-L-L.”
He retired before he was 40.
Ever since then, what I’ve seen has confirmed their attitude.
As a survivor of domestic abuse [everything but physical], to withhold coverage from someone who has been raped, slapped, kicked, stabbed, choked, thrown down the stairs, etc. is itself abuse. Now we know.
Abuse is the absence of conscience and respect. It occurs everywhere.
It can be predicted and prevented, but first you have to know the warning signs…

Funny, I just underwent surgery on my rotator cuff. Having succrssfully avoided relationships most of my adult life, I was rather taken back (eventually annoyed) at the number of times I was questioned about domestic violence. Finally, out of frustration, I started to admit to the possibility that the cats were beating me when I failed to buy the proper canned food.

Hell, if I had something as legit to fall back on would I haved admitted to being so lazy, stupid and clumsy as to have fallen a whole 12 inches from my Total Gym to the floor because I was trying to turn around without letting the board fall to the resting position or letting go of the handles? I think not!

I’m surprised Arizona isn’t part of that list. It’s so Republican-ized, local voters keep re-elcting a sherrif who murders inmates in his custody. It’s as if we have our own Gitmo here.

Most recently they put a woman in an outdoor cage, during afternoon hours with the temperature in the 100s. After four hours without water she died of heat stroke, and had second degree burns on her face and hands.

Arizona doesn’t require insurance companies to cover colon or prostrate exams, areas where men my age tend to develop cancer. So even though I have health insurance at work, I’m still required by Arizona to do my patriotic duty as an American; to just get sick and die.

The stench that comes from these corporations is eonugh to make you need to see a doctor.

In addition to all that you state there is the issue of how they don’t honor commitments. Check your benefit book. There is a clause in it that says if your injury is the fault of someone else and you receive a settlement they will want their money back from you. Even if it comes from a source other than the responsible party’s insurance. Thereby negating their contractual obligation to provide a service. You pay and then you pay again.

This drive for massive dividends and quick growth is destroying our economy. And since they won’t change, we must change the arena in which they operate.